Short Classic Literature

Feel the breath-taking tingle of suspense. Share the captivating horror of the supernatural in these six complete stories presented by a masterful reader.

A delightful anthology of great works by some of Europe's greatest short story writers....

The gentle, unassuming cleric ferrets out the guilty in such mysteries as "The Blue Cross", "The Honour of Israel Gow", "The Hammer of God", "The Queer Feet", "The Flying Stars", "The Secret Garden", "The Eye of Apollo", "The Invisible Man", "The Wrong Shape", "The Sins of Prince Saradine", "The Sign of the Broken Sword", and "The Three Tools of Death".

A breathtaking collection of 80 classic short stories inspired by different locations, people and customs across the globe...

Charles Dickens was an English writer and social critic who lived during the 19th century. He is considered one of the greatest novelists of the Victorian era and is known for his vivid portrayals of the social and economic conditions of the time. His works often addressed issues of poverty, social injustice, and class struggle, and he is credited with helping to raise public awareness of these issues. Some of his most famous works include "Oliver Twist," "A Tale of Two Cities," and "Great Expectations."

Beloved author Mary Stewart's long-lost novella, now available again for the first time in 40 years. In 1879 a wealthy young woman elopes with an impoverished fisherman, leaving her family, who live on the volcanic island of Lanzarote, distraught. In 1968, 23-year-old Perdita West, secretary to the famous author Cora Gresham, visits Lanzarote, the strangest and wildest of the Canary Isles, on a research trip. They meet Cora's estranged son, Mike, and fall in love with the unusual, beautiful little island.

Charles Dickens started his literary career as a journalist reporting for ‘The Morning Chronicle,’ a profession which encouraged his observing eye. This collection of essays and short stories was first published in that journal and anticipates, and frequently demonstrates, the genius that was to come.

La Main est une nouvelle fantastique de Guy de Maupassant parue en 1883. "Or, j'appris un jour qu'un Anglais venait de louer pour plusieurs années une petite villa au fond du golfe. Il avait amené avec lui un domestique français, pris à Marseille en passant. Bientôt tout le monde s'occupa de ce personnage singulier, qui vivait seul dans sa demeure, ne sortant que pour chasser et pour pêcher.

In Agatha Christie’s short story, “The Lemesurier Inheritance,” Poirot and Hastings are asked to keep an eye on the heir of a Northumberland estate. The house, thought to be cursed since the middle ages, is the locale of several recent near-death accidents for a young boy and rumors of the curse increase. But is it possible the accidents are man-made? This short story originally appeared in the December 19, 1923 issue of The Sketch magazine.

Eighteen of the very best American short stories, each a classic in its own right. Stories include "The Little Frenchman and his Water Lots", by George Pope Morris; "The Angel of the Odd", by Edgar Allan Poe; "The Schoolmasters’s Progress", by Caroline M.S. Kirkland; "The Watkinson Evening", by Eliza Leslie; "Titbottom’s Spectacles", by George William Curtis; "My Double and "How He Undid Me", by Edward Everett Hale; "A Visit to the Asylum for Aged and Decayed Punsters", by Oliver Wendell; and more.

Edgar Allen Poe is regarded as one of the greatest American writers and a pioneer of the horror genre, and this collection brings together some of his most celebrated tales. Themes of guilt, fear and revenge abound as the master of gothic horror transports audiences to mysterious worlds, carries them on dangerous sea voyages, and investigates gruesome murders. Exploring the hidden depths of the human mind, these are tales full of thrills and intrigue.

Saadat Hasan Manto was a Pakistani writer, playwright, and author considered among the greatest writers of short stories in South Asian history. Siyah Hashiye is a collection of short stories related to the partion of Pakistan and India.

Included in this collection: "Who Killed Zebedee" by Wilkie Collins, read by Sean Barrett; "Blue Suit" by Edgar Wallace, read by Paul Panting; "A Mysterious Case" by Anna Katharine Green, read by Liza Ross; "The Crooked Man" by Arthur Conan Doyle, read by Stephen Thorne; "Vendetta" by Guy de Maupassant, read by Liza Ross; "The Sapient Monkey" by Headon Hill, read by Paul Panting; and more....

An early collection of short stories by England's greatest humorist, P. G. Wodehouse, My Man Jeeves features eight of the most enjoyable and popular short stories of the early 20th century.

Poet Jean Toomer’s short-story and poetry collection.

This wide-ranging collection comprises the following six short stories by Joseph Conrad: Youth: A Narrative (1902); Karain: A Memory (1898); An Outpost of Progress (1898); The Lagoon (1898); Amy Foster (1909); The Anarchist - A Desperate Tale (1903). 'Youth: A Narrative' is an epic tale of a perilous voyage under sail to Bangkok, with a cargo of coal, narrated by Charles Marlow.

One of the great overlooked voices of modern Irish literature, once hailed as “magnificent” by The New York Times, Mary Lavin’s fiction is now being revived for a new generation of readers in this definitive volume, selected and introduced by Colm Tóibín. During her lifetime, Irish...

A collection of Kate Chopin’s best-known work, including “The Awakening” and seven additional short stories.

To this irresistible debut collection of short stories, Richard Russo brings the same bittersweet wit, deep knowledge of human nature, and spellbinding narrative gifts that distinguish his best-selling novels. His themes are the imperfect bargains of marriage; the discoveries and...

Raffles is Sherlock Holmes' polar opposite, a foil for great detectives and a man with all the immoral charms of a hero-thief, plus a remarkable ability at cricket. Raffles is the godson of Robin Hood, the model for Cary Grant in "To Catch a Thief," and the inspiration of Leslie Charteris' "The Saint." As the great reinvention of the trickster for the 20th century, Raffles convinces readers to throw away their scruples and follow along for wit, bold adventures, and thrilling suspense.